I have never been overly troubled by the targeted killing of Anwar al-Awlaki. To the degree it bothered me at all, it was based on the lack of transparency over how it was legally justified and how the government viewed its constraints in taking out an American citizen in a foreign land. I’m still not satisfied that the federal government has come up with an adequate process for such uncommon situations.
However, the bigger scandal was always the targeted killing of al-Awlaki’s son, Abdulrahman, two weeks later. The president may have been surprised and upset when he found out about Abdulrahman’s death, but that doesn’t mean that anyone was ever held accountable for his death. And Robert Gibbs didn’t cover himself in glory with his spin:
“I would suggest that you should have a far more responsible father if they are truly concerned about the well being of their children,” Gibbs told reporters after a 2012 presidential debate. “I don’t think becoming an al Qaeda jihadist terrorist is the best way to go about doing your business.”
That was a garbled way of saying something true but still obnoxiously dismissive. None of us have any control over how responsible our fathers are. However, if you know your father is on America’s Most Wanted list, you might want to keep your distance from him.
The lack of public contrition from the White House made it painful to read Abdulrahman’s grandfather’s piece in the New York Times:
Abdulrahman was born in Denver. He lived in America until he was 7, then came to live with me in Yemen. He was a typical teenager — he watched “The Simpsons,” listened to Snoop Dogg, read “Harry Potter” and had a Facebook page with many friends. He had a mop of curly hair, glasses like me and a wide, goofy smile.
His death may have been a simple mistake. It may have been the result of a rogue operator. But proper amends were never made. His killing and how the administration reacted to his killing remain one of the darkest blots on this president’s record.
